Future research could examine the infl uence of
gratitude on the construction of self-construals.
These construals might subsequently impact
appraisals of autobiographical memories. According
to Ross ( 1989 ), implicit theories of personal
attributes can infl uence the retrieval of selfconstrual
and facilitate biased recall. Furthermore,
the perception of self can change (or remain relatively
stable) over time (Ross, 1989 ). The role of
gratitude in infl uencing construal of life histories
might be tested both for state and trait gratitude.
People high on trait gratitude may be
better able to retrieve more positive personal life
experiences compared to less grateful individuals.
The effect of experimentally induced gratitude
on the quality of autobiographical memories
(e.g., positive-negative valence of the memories,
perception of negative life events) could also be
investigated.